Category: Pennsylvania GOP

WCNS Discusses Tabas — Tricia Cunningham who hosts Chew on This for 1480 WCNS in Latrobe had a show concerning the Pennsylvania GOP chairman battle between Chesco party boss Val DiGiorgio and respected attorney Lawrence Tabas.

Her guests were Lynn Ryan and Cheryl Freedman.

It’s worth listening to and is pasted below.

BTW, here are the results of the straw poll of state caucuses prior to the official Feb. 4 vote.

DiGiorgio

Tabas

Central Caucus

No Vote Taken—107 total caucus members

Southeast Caucus

68

9

Northeast Central (NECRA)

10

13

Northeast Caucus

12

10

Southwest Caucus

19

40

Northwest Caucus

11

28

Total

120

100

DiGiorgio has a 20 vote lead according to the unofficial poll, which is meaningless since the Central Caucus is holding its 107-vote preference close at hand.

By the way we hear that conservative “hero” Rep. Daryl Metcalfe (R-12) is making calls for DiGiorgio. Big league mistake, Daryl if true.

Val DiGiorgio False Negative Attacks –The vote for Pennsylvania’s next Republican Party Chairman is Feb. 4 with the leading candidates being Chester County boss Val DiGiorgio and Lawrence Tabas who is the state party’s widely respected general counsel.

Unsuccessful party boss Val DiGiorgio

The decision will be made by members of the Republican State Committee. Every county chairman is automatically a member of the committee with the rest being elected to four year terms during a municipal party primary.

Respected attorney Lawrence Tabas

Sheila Sterrett, who is chairwoman of the the Northwest Caucus, and who is part of Pat Toomey’s senate staff, sent the below email to her fellow committee members:

Good evening! I hope everyone enjoyed the swearing-in ceremonies and I know we look forward to the next 4 years to make some major changes with President Trump!!!

I know there have been a flurry of emails over the past month regarding the race for Chairman of the Party. As a caucus, we will be hearing from both Val and Lawrence and have the opportunity to ask them questions.

As a state committee member, I wanted to share with you that I have been made aware of some disappointing and frankly disturbing news. Opponents of Val DiGiorgio are planning an email and media blitz of false, negative attacks against him centered around President Trump’s election campaign – many of these contacts may be emailing or phoning us directly who don’t even live in Pennsylvania – those who have never been involved in our local elections – those who have not work for our judicial or statewide candidates. If you are like me and tired of the negativity in this race, please don’t stand for it. Let the people behind it know that we abide by Ronald Reagan’s 11th Commandment. This is what Val and his team have done.

To preempt these attacks, please take a moment to review the email below which outlines Val DiGiorgio’s and Chester County’s efforts on behalf of our President. If you have any question about Val’s efforts to help move the Republican ticket to victory please visit Setting the Record Straight: Val DiGiorgio and the Trump Campaign

I look forward to seeing you this weekend.

Thank you very much

Sheila

OK Sheila, what are these “false, negative attacks” to be made against DiGiorgio?

Central Caucus Has Not Endorsed Val — This statement from Pennsylvania State Republican Central Caucus co-chairs Dick Stewart and Katherine Wood-Jacobs has been placed on Facebook and declares that their group has made no endorsement in the race for Pennsylvania Republican Party Chairman despite claims made by the Val DiGiorgio camp that they have tapped him.

The other leading contender is respected attorney Lawrence Tabas who is general counsel of the state Republican Party.

Sent: Sunday, January 08, 2017 4:11 PM Dear State Committee Members, Last night, an email was sent out deliberately misrepresenting the truth about yesterday’s Central Caucus meeting. It is such a complete distortion of the facts that we cannot stay silent. When it comes to the statements made about the State Chair race, there was NO VOTE by the Central Caucus. The vote was about whether to allow time to hear from Lawrence and Val yesterday or wait until our February caucus breakfast. The vote had nothing to do with showing support for one candidate or the other but only to allow them time to speak. Val’s email claiming victory is a misrepresentation of the facts. We made the decision in mid-December when we called the meeting that the sole purpose of the meeting was to interview statewide judicial candidates and to have a straw ballot with respect to those candidates. Both candidates for chairman were advised that they would have an opportunity to address the caucus at our caucus meeting in February. In order to consider business not called for in the notice of the meeting, the bylaws would have to be suspended. A vote was taken and it failed. As it was, in order to give all of the judicial candidates a full and complete vetting we skipped lunch and still had to inconvenience the hotel by extending our stay past the hotels deadline for vacating the room. We believe the most important task of the day was to find the best possible candidates for our statewide courts. We didn’t think we needed to change our long standing practice because it didn’t suit Val’s timetable. The Central Caucus takes pride in being the first to vet the candidates for public office in our Commonwealth. We take our role very seriously and understand the importance of this year’s judicial elections. The truth is simple. There was no straw poll and any statement inferring otherwise is just wrong. Sincerely, Dick Stewart & Katherine Wood-Jacobs Central Caucus Co-Chairs

Respected attorney Lawrence Tabas has announced his candidacy for chairman of the Republican Party of Pennsylvania.

Thank God.

The leading alternative is Chesco GOP Chairman Val DiGiorgio, whose incompetency has weakened that once-powerful county organization. He has demoralized the most dedicated Republicans — many of whom now consider themselves former Republicans — for go-along/get-along-toe-the-party-line-at-all-cost types.

What is especially damning is that he did not even bother to try to win over dissenters but launched what could fairly be called a purge. That is the very definition of bad leadership.

A DiGiorgio chairmanship could very well be the end of the Pennsylvania Republican Party.

Tabas is general counsel of the state Republican Party. Even those he beats in court respect him. He has been a Republican activist for 38 years and has worked with candidates at every level.

And he knows what the job of party chairman is.

“Our mission will be to build a grassroots party that has 67 county parties that are stronger than the year before,” he said in the announcement of his candidacy. “In the next four years, we must achieve the following: win the Governor’s office; win an additional U.S. Senate seat; keep and expand our Congressional, State Senate, and State House majorities; win the row offices and judicial races; and re-elect Donald Trump and Mike Pence. “

He has pledged not to take a salary or do lobbying while chairman.

“I will serve as a volunteer Chairman and will not accept any legal work from the State Committee or any other Republican committees.. I have not been, nor will I be, a registered lobbyist, using my position for personal or professional benefit,” he said. “I also will go a step further and fully disclose all the state committee business to our membership so there are no conflicts of interest. I will be accountable to you by visiting all 67 counties every year.”

Lehigh County GOP Insurgency — An insurgency is occurring against the Republican establishment in Lehigh County, with candidates demanding changes for the taxpayers’ benefit against those who think the existing paradigm is just peachy, reports activist Bob Guzzardi.

The most visible battle in the May 21 primary is the one for county executive pitting the establishment’s Dean Browning, a former county commissioner, against Scott Ott, who is running on platform of fiscal sanity.

Mike Schware, the incumbent county commissioner representing the 5th District and, who has been supporting reforms is being assailed by three challengers: Norma Cusick, Kevin Ryan and Nathan Brown..

In the 2nd District, fiscal-hawk Scott Aquila is challenging incumbent Percy Dougherty, who has been doing what the bosses tell him.

Pennsylvania Republican Angers Constituents — Sen. Ted Erickson (R-26), three days ago before the Springfield Republicans, expressed a distinct coolness to privatizing Pennsylvania’s state-run liquor monopoly which is something passed overwhelmingly by the State House and is overwhelmingly supported by his constituents — at least those who are not part of a special interest group.

Erickson has now made it official that he supports expanding Medicaid to low-income workers despite the burdens it will place on the vast majority of his constituents — hey, you hear our national debt is now $16.8 trillion — not to mention the truly poor who will now have to compete with new clients for attention from a shrinking supply of doctors willing to accept Medicaid patients.

Erickson is not a leader in that he can’t fight to make a change to something that doesn’t work or fight to stop a change to make something that sorta works fail. He is not a follower in that he refuses to listen to those who elect him. He is the perfect example as to why Republicans lose — and he should get out of the way.

Toeing GOP Line In Welch Endorsement — The York 912 Patriots have compiled a list of state Republican Committee members who voted to give Steve Welch the party’s endorsement for the U.S. Senate Primary this April 24.

To say the Republican presidential primary has become interesting
would be a gross understatement. With three different winners in the
first three contests—an unprecedented situation—everyone is asking why
the frontrunners keep falling and why the GOP base cannot unite behind a
leader.

Well, hold on to your seat, because here’s a big question: Would you
believe that both Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich voted for Barack Obama
in the 2008 primary? And after they became disenfranchised by the
Republican Party for moving too far Left, they decided to do the only
logical thing: become Democrats? And in addition, does it blow your mind
that besides voting for the Big O, they took out their frustrations
over a too-liberal GOP by financially supporting the most far-left
Democrats in the entire Congress?

Seem far-fetched? Well, it is—and it isn’t.

No, of course, Romney and Gingrich didn’t switch parties, vote for
Obama or support liberal Democrats. If either had, it would, without
question, be lunacy for any element of the Republican Party to endorse
them. To many in the GOP, Obama is not just a political adversary but
the Devil Incarnate who must be defeated at all costs. So running
someone against Obama who had previously supported him would be a
surefire recipe for disaster.

In some respects, Jon Huntsman fell victim to this exact situation.
Many Republicans refused to trust him after he served as President
Obama’s ambassador to China, and his candidacy tanked. Likewise, one of
Romney’s biggest obstacles to winning over Republicans stems from his
implementation of an Obamacare-type health-care system in Massachusetts,
since many feel that he would be unable to effectively run against
Obama on that critical issue.

Enter the Republican primary for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania.

There are seven candidates vying for the opportunity to take on
incumbent Bob Casey. The election is in April, but it’s this Saturday,
January 28th, that may well determine the nominee. That’s when the
Republican State Committee convenes to decide whom it will endorse—if
anyone.

Incomprehensibly, but not surprisingly, certain factions within the
GOP leadership are pushing to endorse Montgomery County’s Steve Welch, a
candidate who:

A. Became a Democrat because the GOP wasn’t conservative enough.

B. Financially supported (former) Congressman Joe Sestak, one of the most liberal members of Congress.

C. Voted for Barack Obama in 2008.

For those who may think this is also a fairy tale to illustrate a point, think again.

Steve Welch voted for Barack Obama and supported Joe Sestak. So why
on earth would the state committee want to endorse Welch, and in doing
so become the laughingstock of the nation?

Good question. And since committee members are elected officials, perhaps they should be asked that before Saturday’s vote.

This is just another example of brain-dead GOP leadership choosing
laziness over hard work. Since Welch is a millionaire who could
self-fund, GOP leaders wouldn’t have to engage in fundraising activities
(AKA “doing their job”) nearly as much as they would for other plebian
candidates—no matter how much more qualified they may be.

Many GOP faithful want to believe that the majority of the state
committee sees a Welch endorsement for what it would be: a political and
public relations disaster, one that would seriously erode what
credibility Pennsylvania’s Republican Party has left. Such an
endorsement would also cement the growing perception—not incorrect, by
the way—that the only thing of importance to the GOP hierarchy in
choosing a candidate is the size of his wallet. Qualifications? A lot of
money. Period. Republican values? Irrelevant.

Brilliant.

******

Given his recent support of leftist Democrats, would Steve Welch make
a good Republican senator? Tough to tell, but Pennsylvania’s Republican
voters should be the ones making that determination, not party leaders
in a smoke-filled backroom who only see dollar signs from a candidate.

Republicans deserve straight answers from Steve, and to this day,
they really haven’t received them. Did he vote for Obama to spite his
“true” party. Did he truly support him? Or did he do it to stop
“Hillarycare,” as was reported? We don’t know. With those significant
questions unanswered, and by extension, character and judgment issues
swirling around Welch, an endorsement would only serve to muddy the
waters and foster an anger among Republicans that hasn’t been seen in
Pennsylvania in decades.

Amazing as it now seems, Hillary Clinton was a Goldwater girl,
supporting Barry in his presidential election. It took years for her to
evolve into the more liberal Hillary that we know today. So perhaps most
disconcerting is the speed in which Steve Welch evolved with his party
loyalties—and then back again.

If one was disgruntled with the Republicans not being conservative
enough, fine. Many felt the same way. But that’s why God made the
Independent Party.

If one is truly seeking more conservative values, where is the wisdom
and good judgment in switching to a party that, for years, has
unabashedly moved further to the Left? And regarding Obama and Sestak,
give them credit where it’s due: Both were crystal clear about where
they stood on issues. Nationalized health care? Absolutely.
Redistribution of wealth through higher taxes? Yep. More government
spending is the answer, as a paternalistic government knows best?
Without question.

So someone abandoning the Republicans to join the Democrats, and
march behind people such as Obama and Sestak, may well indicate that
person’s true political leanings. All the more reason for such a
candidate to be vetted by ALL Republicans, not just the state committee.

There are some on the right who seem opposed to the endorsement
process every time it rolls around. Yet in many instances, it has its
rightful place, a key instrument in a political party advancing its
vision through whom it deems the best candidate. When candidates are
vetted correctly, with the best interest of the party in mind and not
the selfish agendas of individual leaders, endorsements can be
critically important in winning elections.

But when unprecedented situations arise that scream for an open
primary, endorsements should never be forced, as they will virtually
always backfire.

Given this situation, it absolutely boggles the mind that Tom
Corbett—the Republican governor of Pennsylvania—would not only get
involved in a primary, but would choose to endorse someone with Welch’s
background, as he did last week.

For the good of its party, the Republican State Committee should do
the right thing this weekend by voting for an open primary. If it
chooses to self-destruct by endorsing Steve Welch, that laughing you’ll
hear will be Bob Casey as he wraps up another six-year term 10 months
before the election.